Monster-Mania 52, Nov. 2022

In what was a totally unexpected and unplanned twist, my friend hit me up yesterday and asked me if I wanted to go to Monster-Mania in Oaks, PA. And, my reply was pretty much fuck yeah! This would be my first time ever in Pennsylvania and to a Monster-Mania not in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. 

Now, admit ably these last couple of days have been hard for me, with my doggy, Zoey's, birthday coming up next week on the 16th and the first anniversary of her passing being next month on the 12th. So, it was good to have something to do if only get my mind off of things. And, the guest was fucking stacked! We were going on Friday, which is when New York and New Jersey got hit with a shitty rain storm. With the holiday weekend and bad weather our drive in took four fucking hours, but we got there and had a blast.

The first celeb we went up to was the gorgeous Robyn (Twin Peaks, Twin Peaks) Lively. She might have been the highlight of the con (though, to be fair, everyone was super nice to us), being so incredibly friendly and sweet. She talked to both for a nice amount of time. And, in my case, happily showing me pics of the Twin Peaks convention she and other members of the cast attended two weeks ago in Orlando, Florida. You see, I had bought the cover to my complete series Blu-ray to get signed, and I told her how that was one of my all time favorite TV shows of all time. I don't think I can stress, how awesome she is in person. She even, remembered us as she left and waved goodbye to us, later that night!

I then decided to meet some of the cast and crew of Terrifier 2. I haven't seen this sequel, which has become a critical and box office hit, in spite of its indie/ low budget status. That being said, I am a huge fan of the splattery first film. 

First I went over to meet Elliott Fullam. I've been a huge fan of him, having followed his metal channel Little Punk People for the longest of time. He's interviewed legends like Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, King Diamond, etc, and done a great job of that. It's great to see him in a franchise horror flick with such a following. He's really a cool and friendly, little dude, in person. He also liked my battle-jacket, which is always flattering to hear.

His costar the gorgeous Lauren LaVera was sitting next to him. And, she was so sweet and all smiles, as I met her. I've been hearing great things about her performance in the slasher sequel and can't wait to see it for myself!

The last of the those from this movie that were there, that I went up to, was the writer/ director/ FX artist of both movies: Damien Leone. We talked to him for a bit and learned that he once delivered flowers to the Godfather house in Staten Island! And, that a doctor now lives there. 

Some members of the The Monster Squad cast members were also present. That's one of my favorite movies of all time, so I had to meet at least one. And, so I went up to Ashley Bank, who played the little girl Pheobe. She was super sweet in person and called us troopers for coming in this shitty weather. She also joked with how her fellow LA folk freak out on the roadway when it rains over there, even slightly.

The last celeb I met, might be the one I was most pumped to meet: Devon Sawa! Funny thing was I was watching this past Wednesday's excellent episode of Chucky and loving his acting as the asshole priest. As such, I thought to myself how much I would love to meet and low and behold it happened! He was really cool and friendly in person as he talked to us. 

He also asked me who's autograph I had on my DVD of Final Destination. I told him that it was Ali Larter. And, how I got it at an old Fangoria Weekend of Horrors, when she and the rest of the cast were promoting the second flick. He said that damn that's a long time ago, which, of course, it is! In all the talking we had with him and being how tired I felt, I almost left said DVD on his table. But, he he called out to me telling how I had forgotten it. Glad he did because replacing her autograph is close to impossible!

After that I visited the Elm Street house! Well, at least a background set up of it, anyway.

These are the autographs that I got:

Devon Sawa: Final Destination

Elliot Fullam: Terrifier 2 pic (which was shot in the character that he plays room but with his record and art collection)

Robyn Lively: Twin Peaks

Ashley Bank: The Monster Squad

Damien Leone: Terrifier

One thing I really liked was the fact that they had a big ass dealer's room, a couple with some good deals. I didn't buy a whole lot of swag, but I did get:

A KidRobot Phunny Godzilla

And, from Severin Films Booth:

The Strange Vice Mrs. Wardh

Nightmare Castle

Day of the Animals

I've seen all three of these movies before, and they're all fucking good!

We headed home at closing time 10PM, which meant we got home late. We were dead tired (and hungry!), but we had a blast. I would definitely go back to this version of Monster-Mania!

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The 10 Greatest Horror FIlm Franchises of All Time

Horror franchises, like their villains, never die. This is an undeniable fact. This year alone, we have had entries, of various degrees of quality and success, to The Ring, The Conjuring/ Annabelle, Alien, Chucky, and more. This past Friday marked the return of one of the most profitable, popular, and bloody of them all: Saw, in the form Jigsaw (which has done good at the box office!).

As such, now is the perfect time to ask and answer, which are the very best horror film franchises ever. I have taken into account, the quality of each series and the films there in. The better the movies and the higher amount of actually good films contained therein, the higher the ranking. Longevity, success, and influence are also weighed in. So, sit back and enjoy, and who knows, maybe you will wanna binge on some of these after reading this (it is Halloween on Tues, so now would be the perfect time!).

But first, here are some honorable mentions, in no particular order:
Psycho
I Spit on Your Grave
Predator
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The Slumber Party Massacre
Re-Animator

10. Final Destination- One of the most outright fun horror franchises ever made, the Final Destination movies are gleefully gory and imaginative in their creative kills. They don't always have the best characters, and not even the best film (that would be the first one, of course) in the series is great. But, none of the movies are bad. And, that is certainly more than I can say for most of the franchises here.

9. The Conjuring- The youngest franchise on this list, The Conjuring Universe is made up of two connected series: The Conjuring, itself, and its spin-off series, Annabelle. While, both Conjuring films are excellent, with the first one being one of the finest ghost films ever, the first Annabelle movie is a load of fucking shit. Thankfully, its sequel, Annabelle: Creation, released earlier this year, is a solid film.

8. Friday the 13th- The franchise with the most entries on this list, Friday the 13th, for better or worse, was synonymous with the genre in the 80s. The original remains one of the finest slasher movies ever made and a prime example of quality 80's horror. It's sequels, crossover, and remake range in quality from the solid (Friday the 13th part VI: Jason Lives and Freddy Vs. Jason) to a piece of cinematic excrement (Friday the 13th part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan). But, the majority of it is dumb fun, filled with some cool kills and hot, and many times naked, babes. And, for anyone who grew up in its era, is one that surely played a big part in their lives as horror fans.

7. Alien- The Alien franchise starts off amazingly with its first two entries. The original is a classic, but then along comes Aliens, the rare superior sequel and even rarer perfect movie, and blows it away! Perhaps the bar was set too high by these two movies, since the franchise could never reach those levels again. It's movies, which also included a semi-prequel, a sequel to that semi-prequel, and two crossover movies, range from the dumb and entertaining: AVPR, to the barely mediocre, mostly shitty: Alien Covenant and Alien 3.

6. Halloween- Perhaps the franchise with the most wildly all over the place continuity, this long, running series has, one sequel that has nothing to do with anything else before or after (Halloween III: Season of the Witch), as well as a remake and it's own sequel. A new sequel has been promised (threatened?), which will ignore everything expect the first one! The original, itself, is a masterpiece of horror and fear, a scary and extremely influential piece of genre cinema. It is arguably John Carpenter's best film. The following movies have ranged in quality from great, like the Rob Zombie remake, which at least attempted something new instead going through the same old motions, to the piss poor: Halloween: Resurrection. That movie is one of the absolute fucking worst entries in a major horror franchise ever! While most comparable to the Friday the 13th movies, I have gone on to appreciate the attempt of these movies at being more serious, especially in the stronger sequels. 

5. A Nightmare on Elm Street- The best of the big three slasher franchise, ANOES always had the advantage over Halloween and Friday the 13th because of characters. Freddy is an innately more interesting villain than Michael or Jason because, he has a personality. The other characters are usually fleshed out better, too, with more of an attempt at making them likable than the cardboard knife fodder of its competition. The series was extremely successful, enough so that it made New Line Cinema (AKA the House that Freddy built!). The first movie might very well be the greatest slasher movie ever. Aside from the sequels, it also had a crossover with Jason and a less than desirable remake. The quality of the movies that followed the first one range from one of the greatest horror sequels ever made (Dream Warriors) to one of the most imaginative meta-horror movies (A New Nightmare) to one of the biggest balls of fucking shit ever (Freddy's Dead).

4. Romero's Living Dead Films- I have to be honest, if not for the last two movies, this franchise would be number one. Sadly, those bring down the franchise to this position. That being said, the first three movies (Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead) are perfect. The fourth movie, Land of the Dead, is not on that level, but it still an excellent movie, one of the finest of its kind. That movie was a great way to end the franchise. Sadly, Romero decided to reboot it with the godawful Diary of the Dead. I hated that  movie, and must admit to never bothering with Survival of the Dead. Regardless, of the later entries, this series has three, possibly four, legitimate classics in its series. Most franchises are lucky if they have one, let alone two, legitimate classic films in its roster.  Also, it should be mentioned that at the best of these films, they are smart and profound (not words I associate with most horror franchises), and the gore is fucking phenomenal putting to shame most of the movies splatter content on here.

3. Saw- Perhaps the bloodiest big studio horror franchise, the Saw movies is one of only four film series on this list where I like, to some degree or another, all the entries. I love the plot and writing, and the honest-to-god attempt, and success there of, of keeping continuity. They took the care that Friday the 13th admit ably didn't seem to give a flying fuck about. The acting was also mostly, if not always, solid. The best sequel, the incredibly awesome Saw II, is my personal favorite entry, though, technically speaking the first movie is the best in the series. Yet, even its weakest entry, Saw IV, is still a pretty decent movie, which more than I can say about most of the worst of the aforementioned movies. Even more awesome, the latest film, the damn good Jigsaw, continues the story, and is not a motherfucking remake.

2. Evil Dead- Like Alien, the first two movies are masterpieces. Also, like Alien, its second installment tops its first. Though, the range of just how much better Evil Dead 2 is better than Evil Dead is much smaller than how much Aliens blows away Alien. Anyway, its next installment, Army of Darkness is easily the weakest in the franchise, but it has a huge amount of love, especially among more mainstream fans. That being said, it is still an very fun movie, one that easily tops the worst entry in most, if not all of the aforementioned movies. The remake easily tops it, though, and is one of the best modern remakes around, as well, as one of the bloodiest big, studio horror movies, ever!

1. Chucky- Coming to this conclusion took a lot of thought, on my behalf. But, for as many years as this series has gone on, it is amazing that it is still this damn good, and that it always was. It is the only major slasher franchise, and one of the few overall franchises, where I like every film. Even its weakest movie, Seed of Chucky, is still a very interesting movie, something that cannot be said about the worst stalk and slash sequels. It also, always cared for continuity and had continuously returning characters and actors. Plus, its creator, Don Mancini has been involved with every single movie, and still  is. Other than Evil Dead and the Living Dead films, none of the other franchises can attest to that. The finest movie is the great first film (the classic Child's Play), but its best sequel the fun, wild, and stylish Bride of Chucky is one of the most easy to love slasher sequels ever. Plus, it managed to add a female counter part villain to its lead villain in the form of Tiffany. She is embodied by, what a body it is is(!), and voiced by the gorgeous Jennifer Tilly. No other slasher series can admit to that. The fact that the latest movie, the fucking solid Cult of Chucky, still adds new twists and intrigue (and, even ups the gore!!!) is a testament to the greatness of these movies. And, so it is without question in my mind that Chucky is the king of horror franchises!

What do you think is/ are the best horror franchises? Do you agree with my choice as Chucky as king? Comment below and discuss!

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Spotlight on: FINAL DESTINATION

Well, this Friday the forth entry in the supernatural horror franchise Final Destination, ingeniously named The Final Destination (what pt 4 was already taken?!) opens up. Lame and lazy title aside (should we thank Fast and Furious for this?), I am looking forward to it, in particular thanks to the 3D gimmick, which if any franchise would benefit from it and work well with it, it would be this one. Anyways, here are my thoughts/ reviews of the first three. All reviews are out of 4 stars.

- A dude (Devon Sawa) gets a premonition of the plane that he and his classmates are getting on will blow up. He, along with his hottie teacher (Kristin Cloke) and a few of his classmates, get kicked off the plane. The plane blows up. Soon, there after, they begin to die one by one, as there is no escape from death.
The idea of death as a supernatural entity that kills and has a predestined and inescapable fate for all is an interesting and original one. The creative deaths are cool, with the gory and shocking bus accident death of an annoying blonde chick being the highlight. Out of all the accidents this plane one freaks me out the most, probably cause I ain't a big fan of flying to begin with. The characters, for the most part, are likable, and the acting is solid. The movie also gave introduced me to the beautiful Ali Larter, who has been a favorite of mine ever since. This remains my fav entry in the series. ***1/2

- A pretty, young girl (A.J. Cook) has a premonition of a horrible car pile-up accident (THE series' best accident scene, so far), and soon she and a group of others escape death. But, as they begin to die, she, along with a cop (Michael Landes), seek help from the only remaining person still alive from the first film, Clear Rivers (the gorgeous Ali Larter). They try to figure death's plan this time, and, of course try to beat it in the process.
There are less likable characters in this one, but the acting of the lead and Larter are good. And, the deaths are far gorier this time around. An impressive death by falling glass and a barb wire one are especially memorable. The pace is fast and the plot fun and well done. The movie has a wicked sense of humor and proves to be sick fun. A great time to be had for sure, this is my favorite sequel, so far. ***1/2

- This time around a cutie (Mary Elizabeth Winston) gets the premonition and thus her and her classmates get off a roller coaster before they all die. Of course, she has to figure out death's plan to keep them alive.
No one comes back from the first two films, except Tony Todd (who played the creepy corner in the first two), but he is only a voice. Regardless, this is a super fun time. There are even less likable characters in this one. In fact other than the leads, and the cute airheads, everyone is kind of a dick in this film. But, you won't care. It is so much fun to get through. The pace is fast and the deaths are extra gory and creative. Nailgun to the head, impaling, crushed body, motors to head, and most awesome of all, a killer head crushing. The accident scene is the weakest in the series due to it all happening to fast, but the climax is fucking killer an blew me away. That wicked sense of humor returns and keeps things rocking. There are lots of cute girls and some nice nudity thrown in. Truly a killer ride that confirms this as one of the best and most fun horror franchises in the last few years. I love this fucking series! ***1/2

I won't be seeing the new flim this weekend but hope do so very soon. And, FYI, I am even more pumped up about Rob Zombie's Halloween II. For my thoughts on that series go here: http://themastergio.blogspot.com/2008/10/spotlight-on-halloween.html

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Now playing: Mudvayne - Forget To Remember
via FoxyTunes

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